A New Life To Live
by Aria6
Summary: Grimmjow dies at the hands of Nnoitra, but is eventually reincarnated... but will he ever realize it? Will Ichigo? And what will happen if they do? Grimmjow/Ichigo, but with Grimmjow as a slightly different person. Please R&R!
1. Chapter 1

Byakuya closed his eyes and tried to find inner peace. It was incredibly hard at the moment, when his wife and his son were fighting.

He hadn't wanted to marry Lady Solina Shihoin. He hadn't wanted to marry anyone, after Hisana. But the Council of Elders had finally given him an ultimatum and he had accepted his fate, allowing them to choose the woman he would be paired off with, forever. Byakuya had thought it wouldn't matter. He could not love any of them.

And he most certainly did not love Lady Solina, but he was wishing now that he had taken a more active hand in the selection. Simple peace would have been good to have, and he hated it when she tormented their son this way. Solina was crying now, and he knew her tears were completely false. Their son knew it as well.

"Fuck you, bitch!" Byakuya winced as Gyomaru stormed out of the manor. His son was a beautiful young man, and the one truly positive thing that had come out of his marriage. Fortunately, the boy's mother did not follow him into the garden. She had stopped pursuing him that far after he had started 'training' and nearly hit her with a kido. As a father and husband, Byakuya had to disapprove, but as a man… well, he understood. "Blahblahblah, I know I'm not good enough for you, stuff it!" For a moment Byakuya thought Gyomaru was speaking to him, but then he realized he was continuing the conversation with his mother to himself.

"Gyo, please don't call your mother that." He said softly and saw his son scowl, fingering the hilt of his sword. "What was the argument about?" Perhaps there was something he could do to help, although he doubted it. Gyomaru's scowl increased.

"She wants me to go to another one of her damn tea parties. I am done with them! I don't care what kind of guilt trip she gives me, I am DONE! I'm not a little boy she can dress up to show off to her friends anymore!" He snarled and Byakuya closed his eyes for a moment. He wished he could tell the boy that his mother was just proud of him. But it would have been a lie.

"Your mother is… strange. We just have to adapt." He said carefully. The truth was, Byakuya was fairly sure that Lady Solina was a sociopath. She cared nothing about her son and her husband, only the image they presented to the world. She only parented Gyomaru when it was convenient to her, so he effectively had only one parent. When he'd realized the problem, Byakuya had cut his duties to as little as possible to give him more time with the boy. He wasn't sure it had been enough. "Gyomaru, we need to discuss your appearance before the Council tomorrow."

"Not you too!" His son ran a hand through his hair, blue eyes widening in genuine distress. Byakuya winced at the look. "Dad, I don't care what the Council thinks of me, they can go sit on a tack! And I'm only seventeen anyway." He added with a scowl and Byakuya sighed.

"I know, Gyo, I know." He also thought the Council was pushing his son too fast. But he had to admit that Gyomaru was completely wild. Byakuya had been a free spirit as a youngster, but Gyomaru was completely beyond him. He sometimes wondered if it was his fault for not disciplining the boy more. But he'd found it hard to mar their time together with harsh discipline, when Gyo's mother was ignoring him or displaying him like a trophy. "But I just thought we would go over what you were planning to wear." Byakuya said as mildly as he could. Gyomaru's taste was atrocious. Renji had given him some horrible glasses from the Living World, and the boy wore them all the time. He wouldn't put it past Gyo to wear them to the Council meeting.

"Oh, alright. I'll put up with it from you, dad." Gyomaru gave in with ill grace and Byakuya thanked the stars for small favors. "I'm going to wear that white and black outfit I just got, the one you said makes me look like an arrancar. It's not like the Council will notice anyway. And I was going to wear my silver hair clips, just for you." Byakuya couldn't help but smile at that. Gyomaru hated his hair. If the boy had had his way, he would have chopped it all off. But his mother loved it, and Byakuya actually agreed with her on that point. Gyomaru had the same flowing black tresses as his father, and they were absolutely beautiful with his lovely blue eyes. Byakuya sometimes wondered where those eyes had come from. His mother's eyes were brown and his own were grey. Except for Rukia, who was adopted, no one in the family had eyes like that.

"That would be perfectly fine. Thank you, Gyo." His son flashed him a grin and Byakuya couldn't help but admire the bright life in his blue eyes. "Now, I think you could do with some physical effort to wear out your temper." Gyo's grin widened and he could see an astonishing bloodlust in his boy's eyes. Gyomaru had a fighting spirit, and for him, practice was a pleasure.

"That would be great, dad! C'mon!" And Gyo ran out ahead of him, the elder Kuchiki following more sedately. It didn't do for the clan leader to be seen running around the gardens, unless there was actually an emergency. Really, he shouldn't let Gyo do it either. But it was so hard to discipline his son, especially with such minor things.

Hopefully, he would grow out of it with time.

* * *

Byakuya winced to himself as he saw Gyomaru slumping in his chair. The Council business was taking longer than expected, and the boy had very little tolerance for boredom.

Although, Byakuya knew that was not entirely fair. Gyomaru could handle boredom that he chose. He was fully capable of working very, very hard to master something he cared about. He could lie in wait for hours to spring an ambush, handling that boredom with ease. But he hated meetings and disliked the elders of the clan. This was precisely the kind of situation that gave him the least comfort. But eventually, they did get to the part that directly concerned his son. Byakuya could sense Gyo's attention sharpening as the elder's brought up the question of his career path and education.

The simplest thing to do, of course, would be to send him to the Academy. And sooner or later he would go there, if only to complete the exams to verify that he was worthy to be a shinigami. But there were many tensions between the clans at the moment and no one was entirely thrilled by the thought of sending Gyo to the Academy. It should be safe, but accidents did happen, and Gyomaru was the heir to the Kuchiki clan. He also burned with potential and everyone was certain he would achieve bankai. There was no one else in his age group with such power. So they were considering private instructors.

"I would like Kenpachi Zaraki." Gyomaru suddenly said, making his father quietly choke. Kenpachi? He hadn't even been included in the list, since his manners were absolutely appalling and Gyo didn't need any help in that area. His son could be remarkably crude when he chose to be. "Really, I might like to be in his Division someday. Drinking, fighting and fucking, where could I go wrong?" Byakuya put a hand over his face as a dead silence fell over the Council. Then it gave way to outrage.

"Absolutely unacceptable! Gyomaru, if you cannot contain yourself you will be removed from this debate." The head council member looked at his son with ill-disguised disgust. Gyomaru seemed to sulk for a moment, scowling.

"Well, if I can't have Kenpachi, I want Kurosaki Ichigo. I've heard so many stories about him and his remarkable achievements. I would like to be like him someday." That soothed the Council's nerves considerably. Ichigo was over forty years old now, and had calmed down considerably from his youthful days as a substitute shingami. He was still alive and still in the Living World, but in some ways that was all to the good. It would be much harder for another clan to strike out at Gyo there, particularly with such a powerful man looking after the boy.

Byakuya glanced at his son and blinked as Gyo gave him a crooked smile. And he suddenly realized that the boy had just attempted to manipulate the Council. It had been very basic, of course, but offering someone completely unacceptable – Zaraki – then amending it to the person he actually wanted was a good tactic. If Gyo had asked for Ichigo immediately the Council might have objected. But compared to Kenpachi, the orange haired man was a saint. Byakuya felt a combination of sadness and pride as he looked at his son. Sadness, because his ability to manipulate partly sprang from his mother's treatment of him. Pride, because he would need that ability to deal with the clans. Byakuya made a mental note to himself to try to bring out that ability and properly train it.

Eventually, simple little tactics would not be enough.

* * *

Ichigo looked at himself in the mirror, then glanced out his window with a faint sigh.

He looked exactly the same as he had when Rukia had impaled him with a sword and his spiritual powers had been returned. The process had likely started well before that, but the final infusion of reiatsu had stopped his aging. Mentally, he was forty-three. Physically, he was seventeen and always would be.

It was turning into a problem. Some people were remarkably preserved, so he just pretended to be as baffled as everyone else, but sooner or later it was going to be too much. And it would be sooner rather than later. Ichigo thought he would have to admit defeat by the time he hit fifty. And then… what? He wasn't entirely sure.

There were a few options. He could fake his death and start a new life. Urahara could help him with that, he'd been dealing with the problem for his own group of misfits for quite some time. The Visored's would also likely have some ideas. Another option was to leave his body with Kon, who could start a new life, and he could depart for Soul Society. Kon would likely enjoy that and truthfully, Ichigo wouldn't be leaving much behind.

Except for family, his personal life was largely empty. Ichigo had faced the fact that he was gay some time ago, and he'd had a few lovers, but no one who had truly touched his heart. He sometimes wondered if there was anyone for him out there. He worked as a doctor at a small family clinic, and he had friends there, but no one he was truly close to. He was an uncle to Yuzu's children, and that was nice, but she'd moved away to be near her husband's family. Karin had never married.

The one person who had truly touched his heart was dead. Ichigo felt a pang as he thought about it. It had been the most bizarre romance in the universe, if you could even call it that. They'd spent all their time beating the living hell out of each other, but he'd still felt closer to Grimmjow than almost anyone in his life. The insanely aggressive arrancar had seemed to understand him in a way no one else could. He'd loved seeing the fire in those bright blue eyes, hearing the curses from those lips.

But Nnoitra had taken that away. He'd blocked the other Espada's final strike, and for a while he'd thought Grimmjow would live. But after Kenpachi saved him from Nnoitra and Tesla, he'd gone to check the Espada and found he was gone. Looking into those blank, empty eyes had been hard, and it had been harder when the body had just faded away. There had been nothing for Orihime to bring back. He only took comfort in the fact that the Gates of Hell had not opened for the Espada. Hollows were judged on the deeds they had committed while living, and apparently Grimmjow's had not warranted damnation. Someday, he would be reborn.

Ichigo probably wouldn't be alive to see it, though, and even if he did he'd never recognize the Espada. Pushing aside the thoughts of the one man he thought he might have loved, he blinked as a hell butterfly flitted into his room. Reaching out, he accepted the message.

_Greetings, Kurosaki Ichigo. This is Byakuya Kuchiki. Could you please come to my manor to discuss a matter of some importance? A key to our seikamon is enclosed._ Ichigo blinked in surprise, but accepted the reiatsu key. This was very interesting.

"Hey, Kon? It's showtime." The little stuffed toy yawned, sitting up. He'd been napping on Ichigo's computer. "Remember, nothing too perverted." Ichigo had loosened up a bit since his teenage days. Some perversion was allowed, just nothing that would stain his reputation too badly. "Cough up."

"Sure thing, Ichigo." Kon's soul came out, a little pill, and Ichigo swallowed it before popping out of his body. Activating the seikamon, he stepped through and entered Soul Society.

This private gate led directly to the Kuchiki manor, and actually opened into a private sitting room. Byakuya was sitting on the cushions while drinking a cup of tea, and Ichigo blinked as he saw the noble wasn't alone. A teenager was with him, and the kid gazed him over frankly as Ichigo returned the favour.

It was pretty clear from the hair and silver clips who the boy was. Ichigo knew that Byakuya had finally remarried and had a child, but he hadn't realized the boy was almost grown up. Incredibly blue eyes met his, and Ichigo had to suppress a shiver. He hadn't seen eyes that particular shade of blue for decades.

"Hi Byakuya." Ichigo took a seat on the cushions, smiling as Byakuya just looked at him, expressionless. He knew the noble hated how he didn't use any honorifics, but that was just too bad. Surprisingly, the kid grinned at him. "I know who you must be, but I'm sorry, I don't know your name." He said to the boy. The shape of his face was pretty much identical to Byakuya, so there was really no doubt at all.

"I'm Gyomaru, but you can call me Gyo. Hi." The kid flipped something out of his pocket and Ichigo choked as he put on bright pink and blue sunglasses studded with rhinestones. "Renji got me these on a trip to the Living World, aren't they spactastic?"

"Gyo, please." Byakuya sounded pained and his son laughed as he put the glasses away. "Ichigo, I have a proposition for you." Byakuya paused to pour him some tea, and Ichigo tilted his head to one side, curious.

"What sort of proposition?" He asked before sipping his tea. He noticed that Gyomaru was making some pretty impressive inroads on the snacks. But he was probably still busy growing. It had been a long, long time since Ichigo had suffered an appetite like that.

"You probably aren't aware of the tensions between clans in Soul Society." Byakuya said quietly and Ichigo decided not to point out that he was very aware. After the Quincy had been defeated, things had quieted down, but he still kept his ears open for trouble. His best guess was that the next crisis was going to be something internal, and Byakuya's words seemed to be confirming it. "The Kuchiki clan is currently one of the most powerful, and Gyomaru is showing early signs of powerful reiatsu." Ichigo nodded. He could feel it radiating from the kid. It rather reminded him of himself, before he'd learned a bit of control. "We could send him to the Academy, but he would not be allowed any personal guards there. In the current situation, the Council feels that that would be unsafe. Instead, we are wondering if you would be willing to take charge of his education."

"Me?" Ichigo blinked, considering it. It was an intriguing proposition, but… "Byakuya, I do have a job and patients. How much would this pay?" The patients were not an insurmountable difficulty. Things at the clinic were actually a bit slow, so he could probably shift them to other doctors and take a leave of absence, if he wanted to. Ichigo was surprised to find that he did want to. This was interesting, and there was something about Gyomaru that intrigued him. Byakuya named a figure that was pleasantly high and Ichigo quickly made a decision. "I'd be interested. You mentioned guards, though. How many and will they be staying with him?

"Three, and yes, they will. I would suggest that you should use my manor in the Living World, it has many protections." He said and Ichigo nodded thoughtfully. That sounded logical. Gyomaru sighed.

"My own personal chastity belt." He muttered and Ichigo snorted his tea. Byakuya shot his son a look and Gyomaru grinned. "What? He should know what I'm like."

"I'm sure he will discover that very, very quickly." Byakuya said drily. "Kurosaki Ichigo, my son is a horrible brat with no manners and an unspeakable vocabulary. I hope you will be able to civilize him, or I fear for the future of the clan." Ichigo stared at the noble in disbelief, then glanced at his son, who was still grinning.

"Tch. Just for that, I'm going to make sure to lose my virginity before I'm eighteen. I don't care if I have to seduce a guard to do it." Gyomaru took his tea and pounded it back like it was hard liquor. Ichigo couldn't help but wonder if this was a good idea, but then he met those bright blue eyes again. Eyes that particular shade of vibrant blue.

He didn't know where this was going, but he knew it would be interesting.


	2. A Rabid Animal

"Holy shit." Ichigo muttered to himself as he met Gyomaru's attack. "You're a rabid animal!" He shouted at the kid, who grinned back with a wicked gleam in his bright blue eyes.

"Yeah, I know!" He said as Ichigo easily forced him back. Gyo had ferocity on his side, and there was nothing the substitute shinigami could teach him about the desire to kill. Gyomaru had that in spades. What he didn't have was skill, experience and the necessary speed. His shunpo was very good for a seventeen year old, but that wasn't nearly good enough to cope with someone like Ichigo. "Ow!" Ichigo trapped his sword and nearly disarmed the kid, but Gyomaru managed to hang onto his sword with a move that made Ichigo wince in sympathy. He could practically feel the strained muscles Gyo had just inflicted on himself. "Damn it!" Gyomaru's eyes narrowed and Ichigo smiled as he was suddenly reminded of himself. He was sure that was the same look he'd given Urahara, so long ago.

"That's enough for now." He said, lowering his sword. Gyomaru scowled but lowered his as Ichigo glanced at his watch. "Your new guards will be arriving in fifteen minutes." Ichigo was vague on the details, but there had been an attack on one of the Kuchiki clans allies just two days ago. Byakuya was tightening his security, and he'd used his position to get a few real shinigami watching over Gyomaru. The current guards were good, but only one of them had a shikai. Gyomaru was probably more dangerous than any of them.

"I hope Renji is bringing me cakes again." Gyomaru said brightly, sheathing his sword as Ichigo laughed. The kid had a sweet tooth as big as Yachiru. "Rukia's a total loss, she says I need to stop embarrassing my dad." Gyo rolled his eyes and Ichigo couldn't help but grin.

"Well, you do." He said, amused, as he slung his sword over his back. "Come on, let's go." Gyomaru scampered up the stairs and Ichigo followed more slowly, wondering when he'd ever had that much energy. His body had stopped aging at seventeen, but his mental aging seemed to preclude that kind of activeness.

So Gyomaru greeted Renji, Rukia and a cousin named Tatiya covered in sweat and dirt. Fortunately, he realized it and held off from hugging them.

"Hi everyone! Don't get too close, I stink something awful." He said with a wave, then looked at the boxes and bags they were carrying with bright eyes. "That's way too much for just cakes, but are there any cakes involved?" He asked and Renji laughed, slapping him on the shoulder.

"Yeah, I got you some of those Brandenburg cakes you like from the English store. Actually, technically Byakuya got them for you, he gave me the money." Renji said with a smile as Rukia and Tatiya started taking their bags upstairs. "Give me a while to unpack, hey?"

"Oh sure, I can wait. Want some help?" Gyomaru offered, following Renji up the stairs. "Isn't this place neat? Have you ever been here before?" He asked and Renji shook his head. Ichigo followed behind them, pausing at the top of the stairs to look down into the foyer.

The mansion really was remarkable. Situated in the best part of town, it was absolutely huge, with a nearly three acre yard. It was smaller than the clan house in Soul Society, of course, but still massive. A family of servants lived here, tending the grounds, cooking the food and maintaining the building. The building itself was beautiful, with marble flooring, antique rugs and truly ancient paintings on the walls. Ichigo thought he recognized a few very famous artists, although they could be reproductions.

"It's been a while, Rukia. How have things been?" Ichigo asked, pausing at the door to her room. She looked up, giving him a small smile as she folded her clothing, carefully putting everything away.

"Not too bad. The Hiyomaru clan does seem determined to unseat the Kuchiki as the most powerful clan, though." She said with a sigh and Ichigo nodded sympathetically. That was what he was hearing, and apparently the aggressiveness had coincided with the ascension of a new clan leader. Someone with Alexander the Great tendencies.

"So Gyomaru really is a target?" Ichigo asked. He'd been wondering how much danger the boy was really in. Rukia nodded, frowning slightly.

"Honestly, brother is afraid they might try to use Gyomaru to discredit us in some way. It wouldn't be hard to force him into something rash." Ichigo frowned. He thought perhaps Rukia wasn't giving Gyo enough credit. He was crazy, but he really did seem to care about his father and clan. "Or they might try to arrange an accident for him." Rukia's tone was very grim and Ichigo winced. "He will be a powerful leader, someday."

"If he can stop burping in people's faces!" They both started and turned as Gyomaru bounded into the room, grinning. He had changed his clothing and taken a quick shower. "You think I'll be a powerful leader? That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me!" Gyo lifted Rukia off her feet, giving her a hug. The smaller shinigami yelped and pounded on his shoulder.

"Let me down! Gyo!" He carefully set her back on her feet, smiling as she scowled at him. "I see you still have your appalling energy. Won't you ever grow up?"

"I'm only seventeen." Gyomaru protested. "I should enjoy it while it lasts, ne? Why was I here again?" They both watched as he paused, trying to remember. "Oh yeah! We have cakes and Renji's making some tea. Who wants snacks?"

"I would, actually." Ichigo replied. He was interested in Brandenburg cakes, he'd never tried them before. In fact, he hadn't tried many English sweets in his life. It would be a new experience. Rukia smiled, shaking her head.

"I'm fine. Go enjoy yourselves." She gently shooed them out of her room and Ichigo followed behind Gyomaru as he led them to a sunlit parlor. It was beautiful, with a massive skylight and dozens of cushions on the floor. They all had pretty golden tassels, and Ichigo took a seat, smiling as Gyomaru immediately ate one of the cakes. He took one, examining it for a moment.

"Huh." The cake was two colors, cut into quarters with jam layered between. The outside was coated in marzipan. Ichigo tentatively took a bite and found that it was sweet enough to satisfy Yachiru. He found it a little cloying, but Renji poured them tea and that helped quite a bit. In fact, the dark English tea went very well with the little cakes.

"So Ichigo, has he bitten you yet?" Renji asked, pointing his teacup at Gyomaru, who grinned back. Ichigo blinked at him, surprised. "He starts fighting dirty when you disarm him, just warning you."

"Well, what else do you do when you're disarmed?" Gyomaru asked, with fairly good logic. "You're just sore about that time I kicked you in the nuts." Ichigo almost choked on a bit of cake as Renji winced.

"Why'd you have to remind me? It was hours before I got my feeling back!" He complained. Ichigo just listened as the two talked, remembering someone else who had kicked him in the nuts once. He hadn't enjoyed it a bit, but it had been very typical of Grimmjow. It was strange, but Gyo was reminding him more and more of the insane arrancar.

"So now that you guys are here, are we going to the mall? I want to get some new clothes." Gyo said brightly and Renji laughed as Ichigo tried to imagine what clothes the little lunatic would buy.

"Well, your credit card has no limit so why not?" Renji said agreeably. "And I bet Ichigo here has been keeping you so busy you could use a break."

"That is a good idea." Ichigo said, getting surprised looks from both of them. "It's definitely possible to overtrain." He'd learned that, over the years. Renji laughed, taking a sip of his tea.

"This from the guy who learned bankai in a week! You were practically the definition of overtraining." Renji said and Gyo looked at him, bright eyed and curious. Ichigo shrugged.

"That was an emergency. And I hope Gyo doesn't need to know bankai in a week, because that would mean we've all fucked up somehow." Ichigo pointed out, which made Renji grimace a bit before biting into a cake.

"I would love to learn bankai in a week." Gyo said brightly. "But does it involve some kind of hideous torture? I'm not down for hideous torture." Ichigo winced to himself as he remembered Urahara's training.

"Pretty close." He admitted. "I think we can take our time." There was no rush, and he was just getting to know the kid. He didn't want Gyo to leave the living world too soon.

"You have definitely mellowed out. I guess that's what happens when humans turn forty. Well, I'm done, have you finished, you bottomless pit?" Renji poked Gyo in the side, and Gyomaru inhaled one final cake before chugging his tea.

"Now I am! Let's go fetch Rukia and get me some new threads." He said with a grin. "And get you some new threads too. We need to be matching in style!" That made Ichigo slightly apprehensive. What was Gyomaru's idea of style?

As it turned out, Gyo actually had very good taste. It appeared he'd taken after Byakuya in that area, and the outfits he found for himself were both expensive and well fitted. The one he liked best, though, was a white jacket along with tightly tailored black jeans. He wore it with a black silk shirt beneath the jacket.

"I look great like this, don't I?" Gyo turned around, checking himself out from all angles in the mirror. "My butt looks awesome, don't you think?" Ichigo choked a bit as Gyo turned and flaunted that butt at him. It did look amazing, and his reaction to that was a little disturbing. But he simply couldn't help it. "Aren't you gonna try on that stuff you picked out?"

"Huh? Oh, right." Ichigo snapped out of his daze and went into the dressing room. It didn't take him long to come out, and Gyomaru wrinkled his nose at the sight.

"They need to be tighter. You've got a great ass too, Kurosaki, you should flaunt it." Gyomaru said firmly, making him blush.

"Have you been noticing his ass, kid?" Renji came out of his own changing room, looking… different. Ichigo had to struggle not to giggle.

"Bright purple really doesn't suit you. And those gold chains make you look like a pimp." He said, making Gyo laugh and Renji look slightly hurt.

"Here, wear these with it! It'll be the crowning touch!" Gyo handed him his sunglasses and Ichigo winced as Renji put them on. The blue and pink hearts did add the crowning touch to a very demented picture. "You should totally get that and wear it to a captain's meeting. Dad would plotz!"

"Yeah, no, I do have to live with Byakuya you know." Renji handed back the glasses and looked at his clothes regretfully. "I like them, but Ichigo's right, I look like a pimp. Oh well." He went back to the changing room and so did Gyo. Ichigo looked down at his pants for a moment, then went to find a tighter version.

Maybe Gyo was right. He did have a very nice body, perhaps it was time to flaunt it.

* * *

The next time they trained, Ichigo decided to move it to the grounds of the manor. Renji and Rukia were both watching as they practiced.

"So the object of this exercise is simple. You have to knock off my hat." Ichigo said firmly, pressing down the hat a bit farther. It was silly, maybe, but Urahara's training had worked. He was going to go with it. Then the hat was suddenly knocked off his head. "HEY! I wasn't ready, you brat!"

"Well, you said to knock it off!" Gyomaru said with a wide grin and Ichigo glared at him before picking the hat back up. It was white, with little pink stripes. Not really his style, but it had been on sale for a dollar in the bargain bin. He didn't wear hats in general so he wasn't going to waste money on it.

"Right." He pushed the hat back down and took a ready stance. "Now we – DAMN IT!" The wind suddenly picked up and snatched the hat off his head. Ichigo cursed and tried to grab it as Gyo laughed.

"So how is this hat thing working out for you?" Gyomaru asked, highly entertained by the spectacle of his trainer trying to retrieve his errant headgear. Ichigo caught the hat and regarded it balefully for a moment before tossing it at his student.

"On second thought, you can have it. It's totally your style." He said and winced as Gyo immediately put it on, then added his pink and blue sunglasses. "Awful, just awful… are you ready?"

"I was born ready!" Gyomaru did take a moment to snap his glasses back into his pocket, though. Ichigo was amazed by how much he seemed to love the things. He certainly protected them better than Renji managed to protect his glasses. "Rar!"

The fighting began in earnest then, and Ichigo found that Gyomaru's flash step was improving. It was probably just the steady practice with someone over his level, but the teenager was showing improvement in all areas. Except one.

"Oh come ON!" Gyo winced as he shook his left hand and Ichigo struggled not to laugh. He'd just tried a low level kido and had it backfire nicely. "That hurt. I think I have a blister." He muttered then yelped as Ichigo attacked him. "Bastard!"

"Do you think an enemy will wait for you to recover when you blow yourself up? I don't think so." Ichigo's eyes narrowed as he forced Gyomaru back, using his full power and skill on the teen. It wasn't really fair, but Gyo was holding out, if just barely. Then Ichigo got a surprise. He swung at the teen expecting the boy to dodge, but instead Gyo leapt up, resting a hand on Zangetsu's edge and giving him a blinding roundhouse kick to the face. Ichigo hit the ground hard and rolled, slamming into a wall with stunning force. He gasped for a moment then blinked as a hard hand gripped the front of his robe, lifting him up. For a moment he stared into feral blue eyes and felt a strange sense of déjà vu. He was absolutely certain Gyomaru was going to punch him, but then the boy blinked, the grip on his collar loosening.

"Wow, how did I do that? Are you alright?" Gyomaru let go of him and Ichigo caught himself, steadying himself against the wall.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Ichigo said, wiping his face with one hand and feeling a little shaky. He hadn't expected Gyomaru to get the better of him like that, and it was a bit shocking. "Are you okay?" He grabbed Gyo's hand, fully expecting to see that the bloodthirsty boy had cut himself on Zangetsu. But to his surprise, there was no mark. "How did you do that?" He stared at the unmarred skin, surprised and a bit shocked. Gyomaru was also looking down at his hand, and flexed it, making a fist.

"I don't know. That was weird." Gyomaru sounded a bit lost and Ichigo looked up to meet troubled blue eyes. "It just came to me, and then I wanted to hit you." His breath caught as Gyo confessed that. "I don't know why though." Blue eyes met brown and held, and for a moment Ichigo felt that déjà vu again. He could almost see green marks beside those blue eyes –

"Are you guys both okay? That was freaky, Gyo!" Renji called and they both flinched, pulling away from each other. Ichigo swallowed, wondering if he'd imagined that moment of attraction.

"Did you cut yourself?" Rukia said, businesslike, as she seized Gyomaru's hand. He didn't resist at all, looking dazed as she checked his palm. "That's strange. You should have hurt yourself quite badly, grabbing his sword like that. Be more careful Gyo." She gently scolded him. "Injuring yourself won't help your training at all."

"Huh? Oh, right. I'll be good Rukia." Gyomaru said, then grimaced, pulling his hand away. "I'm hungry now. Is there something to eat?" He said, changing the topic. "Like, a steak? I want some meat!" Ichigo couldn't help but snicker. Gyomaru often had cravings, usually either for meat or for sweets. Rukia sniffed, shaking her head with a small smile.

"Just don't tear it apart with your teeth like last time. That's why we have forks and knives." She said before leading them back into the house. Ichigo blinked as his own stomach growled. How long had it been since lunch? Long enough that he was a bit hungry, too. A snack would be welcome.

However, Gyo needed more than a snack. His teenage appetite saw him ravening through a large salad with pickled ginger and tinned salmon, then polishing off a nice sized steak with rice on the side. Then he licked the plate, to Renji's amusement and Rukia's disgust.

"Yeah, the civilizing Gyo project is meeting with poor success – ow, Rukia, don't hit me!" Gyo stuck his tongue out at her and Ichigo smiled, just watching the byplay as he sipped his tea. "You're just jealous that I can lick off a plate and look sexy doing it, and you can't."

"Sexy? You think that was sexy?" Ichigo said, blinking. Licking off a plate? Sexy? Gyomaru gave him a grin.

"Well, no, but check this out." He licked his plate again, and Ichigo's breath caught as he made the movement astonishingly catlike. It was also slow and sensual, and he had no problem imagining that tongue in other places. Everyone was staring, he vaguely noticed, as Gyomaru removed even the smallest specs of food from his plate. "And if you think that's awesome you should see what I can do with a pickle." Gyo added as he came up for air. Ichigo just stared, feeling like his face had to be as red as his hair.

"You're going to give us all nosebleeds, kid. How can you be a virgin and such a horrible tease?" Renji asked and Gyo just shrugged with a grin.

"It's a gift. So what's up for tomorrow? I heard something about going to the zoo? I want to see the panthers!" Gyomaru said with a small, astonishingly catlike growl. "I love cats." He added and Ichigo smiled as he remembered the other cat in his life. The one that had died much too soon. He didn't know what it was about Gyo that always reminded him of Grimmjow, but that feeling was not going away. If anything, it was getting stronger.

Maybe someday he would understand what it meant.


End file.
